Shulman gave us the concept of Pedagogical Content Knowledge in 1986 when he wrote, "Whether in the spirit of the 1870's, when pedagogy was essentially ignored, or in the 1980's, when content is conspicuously absent, has there always been a cleavage between the two?" (Shulman, 1986, p. 127)
Content Knowledge (CK)
Some people know their content well.
Pedagogy Knowledge (PK)
Some people know all about how to teach. ("The emphasis is on how teachers manage their classroom, organize activities, allocate time and turns, structure assignments, ascribe praise and blame, formulate the levels of their questions, plan lessons, and judge general student understanding." (Shulman, 1986, p. 127))
Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK)
What are we doing to insure that new teachers know how to teach AND know their content? To quote Shulman, "Where do teacher explanations come from? How do teachers decide what to teach, how to represent it, how to question students about it and how to deal with problems of misunderstanding? . . . How does the successful college student transform his or her expertise in the subject matter into a form that high school students can comprehend?" (Shulman, 1986, p. 127)
Technology Knowledge (TK)
Koehler and Mishra, in their chapter "What is technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK)" of AACTE's handbook for educators on TPCK [now TPACK] introduce us to the nature of technologies (both analog and digital) and describe how the inclusion of pedagogy "further complicates teaching". They view teaching with technology as a "wicked problem" based on the work of Rittel & Webber (1973). They say people must "understand information technology broadly enough to apply it productively at work and in their everyday lives, to recognize when information technology can assist or impede the achievement of a goal, and to continually adapt to changes in information technology." It "requires a deeper, more essential understanding and mastery of information technology for information processing, communication, and problem-solving than does the traditional definition of computer literacy." "This conceptualization of TK does not posit an 'end state' but rather sees it developmentally, as evolving over a lifetime of generative, open-ended interaction with technology." (AACTE, 2008, p. 17)
Technological Content Knowledge (TCK)
Technology and Content have always been combined in complex ways . . . look at the invention of writing, the printing press. Life gives us technological content knowledge without even a need for pedagogy. "We can define TCK as an understanding of the manner in which technology and content influence and constrain one another." "Teachers need to understand which specific technologies are best suited for addressing subject-matter learning in their domains and how the content dictates or perhaps even changes the technology--or vice versa." (AACTE, 2008, p. 16)
Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK)
TPK is "an understanding of how teaching and learning changes when particular technologies are used." (AACTE, 2008, p. 16) Teachers need to be able to take a technology designed for one purpose (word processing for the business world, blogs or podcasts for entertainment/communication/social networking purposes) and "'reconfigure it' for their own pedagogical purposes". "TPK requires a forward-looking, creative, and open-minded seeking of technology, not for its own sake, but for the sake of advancing student learning and understanding." (AACTE, 2008, p. 17)
Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK or TPACK)
"TPCK is an emergent form of knowledge that goes beyond all three components (content, pedagogy, and technology). Technological pedagogical content knowledge is an understanding that emerges from an interaction of" the three components. "TPCK is different from knowledge of all three concepts individually." Koehler and Mishra argue "that TPCK is the basis of effective teaching with technology and requires an understanding of the representation of concepts using technologies; pedagogical techniques that require use technologies in constructive ways to teach content; knowledge of what makes concepts difficult or easy to learn and how technology can help redress some of the problems that students face."
REFERENCES
AACTE Committee on Innovation and Technology (2008). Handbook of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK) for educators. New York, NY: Routledge.
Rittel, H., & Webber, M. (1973). Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sciences, 4(2), 155-169.
Shulman, L. (1986). Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching. Educational Researcher, 15(2), 4-14.
Graphics from Koehler and Mishra's 2008 presentation at SITE, retrieved from
Table of Contents
Content Knowledge (CK)
Some people know their content well.Pedagogy Knowledge (PK)
Some people know all about how to teach. ("The emphasis is on how teachers manage their classroom, organize activities, allocate time and turns, structure assignments, ascribe praise and blame, formulate the levels of their questions, plan lessons, and judge general student understanding." (Shulman, 1986, p. 127))Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK)
What are we doing to insure that new teachers know how to teach AND know their content? To quote Shulman, "Where do teacher explanations come from? How do teachers decide what to teach, how to represent it, how to question students about it and how to deal with problems of misunderstanding? . . . How does the successful college student transform his or her expertise in the subject matter into a form that high school students can comprehend?" (Shulman, 1986, p. 127)Technology Knowledge (TK)
Koehler and Mishra, in their chapter "What is technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK)" of AACTE's handbook for educators on TPCK [now TPACK] introduce us to the nature of technologies (both analog and digital) and describe how the inclusion of pedagogy "further complicates teaching". They view teaching with technology as a "wicked problem" based on the work of Rittel & Webber (1973). They say people must "understand information technology broadly enough to apply it productively at work and in their everyday lives, to recognize when information technology can assist or impede the achievement of a goal, and to continually adapt to changes in information technology." It "requires a deeper, more essential understanding and mastery of information technology for information processing, communication, and problem-solving than does the traditional definition of computer literacy." "This conceptualization of TK does not posit an 'end state' but rather sees it developmentally, as evolving over a lifetime of generative, open-ended interaction with technology." (AACTE, 2008, p. 17)Technological Content Knowledge (TCK)
Technology and Content have always been combined in complex ways . . . look at the invention of writing, the printing press. Life gives us technological content knowledge without even a need for pedagogy. "We can define TCK as an understanding of the manner in which technology and content influence and constrain one another." "Teachers need to understand which specific technologies are best suited for addressing subject-matter learning in their domains and how the content dictates or perhaps even changes the technology--or vice versa." (AACTE, 2008, p. 16)Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK)
TPK is "an understanding of how teaching and learning changes when particular technologies are used." (AACTE, 2008, p. 16) Teachers need to be able to take a technology designed for one purpose (word processing for the business world, blogs or podcasts for entertainment/communication/social networking purposes) and "'reconfigure it' for their own pedagogical purposes". "TPK requires a forward-looking, creative, and open-minded seeking of technology, not for its own sake, but for the sake of advancing student learning and understanding." (AACTE, 2008, p. 17)Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK or TPACK)
"TPCK is an emergent form of knowledge that goes beyond all three components (content, pedagogy, and technology). Technological pedagogical content knowledge is an understanding that emerges from an interaction of" the three components. "TPCK is different from knowledge of all three concepts individually." Koehler and Mishra argue "that TPCK is the basis of effective teaching with technology and requires an understanding of the representation of concepts using technologies; pedagogical techniques that require use technologies in constructive ways to teach content; knowledge of what makes concepts difficult or easy to learn and how technology can help redress some of the problems that students face."REFERENCES
Graphics from Koehler and Mishra's 2008 presentation at SITE, retrieved from